Bernanke to Obama, Dems: Don't Raise Taxes

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Is the myopia that characterizes the right-leaning comments above just so-much ideological naivety, or is it purposeful? Are you incompetent, or are you trying to sabotage real political and economic dialogue?
It is absolutely irresponsible to say the economy was doing fine until 2007! You have no sense of history or systemic shifts. The "class war" discussed by McCain in the last debate was started way before the Democratic congress or Obama's campaign. It was the right-wing that started the class war! The Bankruptcy Reform Laws, the supply-side economics, voodoo economics... the ideology has been destructively at work for some time.
The Bush administration came to power with a radical privatization agenda, which has shifted hundreds of billions of dollars into the hands of their crony industries. Neoconservatism is only a militarized form of neoliberalism. It was this administration and the Republican congress who bears responsibility for driving us into the economic crisis we are in.
Listen to Paul Krugman at least. This economic crisis has been a long time coming.

Sol of IN 5:28PM October 21, 2008

"Did Bernanke suggest some other way to pay for the out of control spending of this administration? "
CONGRESS writes the budget.
Correction: "Did Bernanke suggest some other way to pay for the out of control spending of this Pelosi/Reid Democrat majority Congress?"
Answer: YES. Quit wasting money on pork-barrel projects, over-the-top bailouts, and an expanded welfare state.

pj of TX 4:40PM October 21, 2008

The #1 threat to our economy right now is the re-election of the incumbent Democrat Congress, the most incompetent Congress which has made current economic problems worse, combined with the inexperienced leftwing Obama putting his wealth-redistribution plan in place.
Bernanke is just stating the obivous - higher tax rates will hurt the economy.
What he didnt tell you is that Obama's plan will raise marginal tax rates on the middle class as well as the rich. Under Obama, the marginal tax rates for people making $40,000 will be the highest they have been in decades.
Obama is dishonest in calling this plan a tax cut. It's a welfare expansion program.
Factoid:
The best President for the stock market was Calvin Coolidge.

travis m of OH 4:37PM October 21, 2008

Where in all this is the "windfall profits for athletes and celebrities" you liberal idiot?
Madonna paid many millions in taxes and created many jobs on her way to ammassing wealth. If you liberal idiots would spend as much time and effort trying to create wealth instead of seizing it you might not have to deal with your anger and mental illness.

PAT DUGGAN of IL 2:39PM October 21, 2008

The economy was doing OK until 2007, when the Democrats came into power. They thought that a weak economy would help their chances in 2008 and their strategy has been successful. Not only have they created a mild problem (certainly nothing comparable to the 1930s, an era of 20%+ unemployment), but now they are hyping the problem--reveling in it.
They inherited a growing economy, with a shrinking federal deficit, with a politically weakened President who could do little to oppose them, and who spent all of his remaining political capital in the Iraq surge. As the housing bubble burst, they attacked the lenders (as though operating at a loss is a predatory business practice) in order to create a banking catastrophe.
Now they are looking to eliminate the cheap 2003 tax cuts ($40 billion per year, created an economic turnaround) but to keep the costly 2001 tax cuts ($160 billion per year, prolonged the 2000-2001 slowdown).
The problem is not wealth, the problem is poverty. In a free market, money is made through voluntary exchange, which means that the wealthy have made their money by creating wealth for others. They are wealthy because they create value, the poor are poor because they do not. They are to be pitied if they are poor because they cannot create wealth, but in any case they are poor because they do not create wealth for others.
Someone asked how Madonna got to be worth $500 million. She did that by creating a few dollars worth of value each for many millions of people. Even speculators create value, by hoarding (and thus raising prices) ahead of a shortage, and selling into the shortage.
No one can maintain wealth unless they either maintain their personal productivity or use their assets productively. The rich are attacked because they hold value in productive assets and people want to consume those assets. The great tempation is to eat our seed corn. Trickle-down does not work, neither does killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.
Progressive taxation is promoted as a way to take from the rich and give to the middle class, while doing nothing for the poor. LBJ's Great Society did not work, but at least the focus was on helping the poor. Obama's strategy is that the great majority of middle-class Americans should force others to support them. He is winning on the appealing idea that the majority of Americans should be able to consume more than they produce, and send the bill to the hyper-productive rich.
In my opinion, we should provide support for the needy, but most people should expect to create more value than they consume. Price is the mechanism that allows people to make choices that conserve and create value. Fortunately, that idea is gaining ground everywhere else in the world where leftist candidates are losing ground. Unfortunately, that idea has become a political loser here in the United States.

Mazzula of VA 10:55AM October 21, 2008

This morning, this same genius wants the government to spend even more money it doesn't have and pass out another "stimulus package" that didn't work the first time.
Keep doing the same failed tactics and hope for a different outcome?
Do we really need a change in Washington?

HillbillyBill of TN 8:19AM October 21, 2008

Did Bernanke suggest some other way to pay for the out of control spending of this administration?
Is there some undisclosed secret way for the government to make money to cover it's unlimited spending stupidity?
Perhaps the government should invest in the stock market the way GWB wanted working people to squander their social security?
What sane solution did this administration puppet tell the congressional committee to do to get us out of the spending mess? All he offered was what not to do without telling them what to do?
Great advice from such an expert.
Do we need change in Washington?

HillbillyBill of TN 8:15AM October 21, 2008

Obama and the Dems can very well raise taxes now or anytime on incomes over $250K and NOTHING whatsoever bad will happen to the economy. In fact, we'll all be screwed if they don't. The 10 trillion owed by Uncle Sam must be addressed including the 2 trillion the payers of income tax borrowed from the Social Security Trust Fund.
Madonna is in the news about her pending divorce being a $525,000,000 split-up. HOW in the heck did Madonna get to be worth a half billion dollars? Where was your income tax, you Republican ninnies? Do you think taxing the pop culture icons is going to bring down the house? Do you think she is a "job creator"? We're a decade late.
Wake up.

of 9:07PM October 20, 2008

Here's a couple of knuckleheads who are to blame for letting this financial mess get as bad as it is. Bernanke doesn't have much credibility anymore after letting the economy bomb under his watch, so we can discount his advice easily.
Paulson already wants out, and he's really a fox guarding the henhouse if there ever was - looking out for his buddies by handing out the Ultimate Corporate Welfare.
Advocates of our debt-ridden economy need to step back and let someone else fix it, we can not trust these sorry republicans anymore on the economy, and certainly not McC who admittedly doesn't even understand interest rates cuts, enough to answer a question about them. I guess that's why McC think Palin is pretty smart.

Pablo of WA 9:01PM October 20, 2008

It's only "basic economics" from the cultural, social, and economic perspective from which you stand. The problem with Bernanke and the talking heads is that they tend to "naturalize" these premises of perspective and call it "basic economics." From such a limited perspective, they fail to consider alternatives, and so their diagnoses are myopic and lack imagination. We need systemic changes, so we need an imagination that comes from beyond the system.
The political system needs to be transformed along with the economic system: As in economics, our political system needs to shift from a "representational" democracy to a "participatory" democracy. Representational democracy is already corrupted by the idea that one individual can singularly express the desires of the multitude.
It's not simply a matter of saying, "Basic economics, gang. If only Congress would listen." It's not "basic economics," and as a representational body, Congress is already corrupt. We need to work toward achieving the conditions that allow for equitable participation for all. We need to take seriously the promises of freedom embedded in our social discourse. More importantly, we need to turn these promises into service.
The paranoid, populist right are caught in an irrational frenzy. Their fear is peddled to them from their idolized talking heads--the very ones who profit from this state of paranoia by their endless commentary on the machinations of what they call the "culture wars." The paranoid, populist right needs to quit worshipping the gods of the state. Learn from your scripture that one should smash idols. The so-called "free market," the celebrated heroes of talk radio, and even racialized fear are all forms of idolatry and self-idolatry.
The economics of this world and this nation will not change until the politics is transformed. No more fear. No more sad militarism. No more unifying paranoia. We need imagination, commitment, responsibility, and works of love.
If only Congress would listen.

Sol of IN 7:21PM October 20, 2008